One Summer in Italy

by Sue Moorcroft

  She grinned. ‘Long story! No time right now.’

  Levi proved he had something else on his mind anyway. ‘Have you seen Amy? She seemed a bit quiet when I saw her in Il Giardino earlier.’

  ‘Not since we both got off shift last night,’ Sofia replied. ‘Why was she in Il Giardino? It was supposed to be her day off. If she was called in to do a shift, that could have made her down, I suppose.’

  ‘True.’ He paced beside her, his limbs moving easily but none of them touching her. He began to tell her about his lunch in town and that he’d forgotten how salty pecorino was when he’d ordered it and had had to drink two pints of beer to compensate. They reached the hotel and he raised a casual hand in farewell as he turned into Il Giardino in the direction of the main doors. Sofia hurried around towards the yard.

  But just as she reached the gate he suddenly appeared again before her, breathless. He must have veered off his course and sprinted along the edge of the car park to intercept her in the tiny space between the corner of the hotel and the fence to the yard. ‘Oh!’ she gasped as he whirled her into his arms.

  His eyes blazed with laughter. ‘Nobody can see us here,’ he whispered and stooped to kiss her quickly but thoroughly, his hands settling comfortably on her buttocks to pull her close against him. ‘Having trouble keeping my hands off you. You look fantastic,’ he murmured. Then dropped a last kiss beside her mouth and released her, vanishing back around the corner, leaving Sofia to race down to her accommodation, heart hammering. But at least she had a smile on her face.

  Luckily, once dressed in her uniform, she found it possible to pull all her loose hair back into a bun and wrap the fishtail braid around it in a stylish way she thought even Benedetta and Aurora would approve of. If she’d had to unravel the whole damned thing and brush it into a new style she would definitely have been late.

  As it was, she slid into the space behind the reception desk bang on time, gasping, ‘Ciao!’ to Aurora. Aurora looked away from whatever she was doing only long enough to murmur, ‘Before you log on, my mother would like to see you in her office.’

  Sofia thought, Oh, crap. Now what? but she said, ‘Thanks, Aurora,’ and made her way calmly to the staff area. She was soon knocking on Benedetta’s office door and hearing ‘Entra’ before going in.

  Benedetta didn’t offer her a seat. With one hand on her computer mouse she looked away from the screen only long enough to say, ‘You’re dating a guest again? I have just seen you with Signore Gunn.’

  Shock grabbing the nape of her neck, Sofia stuttered, ‘No.’ Then decided, mutinously, not to elaborate. Walking up the hill with a guest was definitely not ‘dating’ and probably no other boss in the world would pretend that it was.

  Benedetta clicked her mouse a couple of times and glanced up once more. ‘I saw you.’

  ‘I caught up with him just before he reached the hotel and he began a conversation. It would have been rude not to reply.’

  ‘And it would have been rude not to let him kiss you? Put his hands on you? I was at a window above and could see you plainly.’

  Oh.

  Sofia stared, dumb with dismay. Benedetta was wearing the same dark, simmering expression as when she’d sacked her before. But Sofia was damned if she was going to be sacked again now, just when she’d done all the freaking training for the job she didn’t want and Levi was leaving. She gathered her wits quickly. ‘I had lunch with my uncle, aunt and cousin at Hotel Alba.’

  Benedetta’s mouse clicking paused as she looked up, eyes narrowing as she waited for more. Sofia couldn’t think where to go from there and was already wishing she’d thought of another conversational gambit to distract Benedetta from her mean-minded complaints, but then Benedetta sat back, folding her hands and summoning a smile. ‘And how is the Bianchi family?’

  ‘Well, thank you.’

  Benedetta nodded encouragingly. ‘I hope your uncle didn’t try to coax you away from us?’

  Anger at the question stirred inside Sofia but a wish to avoid getting herself sacked again kept the escape valves closed tight. ‘In fact he did.’

  Benedetta waited.

  Sofia let her.

  Benedetta weakened first. ‘Are you going to take it?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘You seem upset.’ Belatedly, Benedetta waved Sofia to a seat, leaving her own chair in order to pour two cups of coffee from the filter jug in the corner of the room and place one before Sofia.

  Sofia added the cream Benedetta offered but not sugar. ‘I’m not upset,’ she replied, feeling very upset at finding herself caught in other people’s personal and political crossfire when all she’d wanted to do was come to Montelibertà and be free.

  For several moments Benedetta sipped her coffee, assessing Sofia with her gaze. ‘Perhaps you were shown around Hotel Alba?’

  So Benedetta was hoping Sofia was a spy in the camp. Deciding that this conversation was heading downhill fast and the best she could hope for was to keep a hand on the steering wheel, Sofia settled back in her chair. ‘I was shown a little. It’s a beautiful hotel.’ She paused delicately. ‘I’ve been invited back …’

  Eyes widening in excitement, Benedetta almost spilt her coffee. ‘Really? Would you perhaps be able to … learn about the hotel?’

  Sipping her coffee and licking her lips as if taking a moment to consider, Sofia let her voice drop conspiratorially. ‘I think so. Would you want me to?’

  Benedetta’s eyes nearly popped from her head. ‘Very much.’

  ‘Details that aren’t available on the Internet?’

  ‘Exactly.’ Benedetta had let her voice drop to match Sofia’s. ‘Key staff … would they be interested in an approach from another hotelier? Deals and discounts with suppliers. Details of regular affluent customers perhaps?’

  Sofia drained her cup, replaced it on its saucer and rose, smoothing down her skirt. She neither agreed nor refused but smiled as she moved towards the door. ‘Shall I return to reception and log on now?’

  ‘Yes, yes!’ Benedetta was positively beaming. ‘I would like to know when you’ve visited Hotel Alba again.’

  ‘I understand.’ Sofia shut the door softly behind her as she left and returned to her post on the front desk, disappointed at what people would do in an all’s-fair-in-love-and-business kind of way; knowing she was just as bad for deliberately creating the impression she’d pass information to make Benedetta forget about seeing Sofia in a clinch with a guest.

  Aurora looked at her enquiringly as she logged on to the computer. Sofia mumbled something about everything being sorted out so Aurora returned her attention to the guest she was helping.

  Sofia’s eye was caught by the sight of Levi, his lower half clad in biker gear, powering his way down the main stairs two at a time, crash helmet and jacket hooked over his arm. He grinned in her direction with a small lift of his eyebrows.

  Sofia returned a businesslike smile before turning to answer the phone, definitely not up to telegraphing that Benedetta had somehow seen him kiss her.

  By the time she’d taken the call Levi had gone and she settled down to alphabetising the check-in forms for guests expected after 6 p.m., imagining that he was taking his bike for a run to check it over before he began his long trek back across the continent in three days’ time. Presumably bikes had to have their fluids topped up just like cars so maybe he’d take it to a garage.

  Soon he’d be gone for good. Back to his life in England, his business, his family, his home.

  The screen blurred and she had to blink hard to clear her vision. Once Levi had left, Sofia would be able to assess her situation depending on whether he’d told Amy he was her father and what Amy’s reaction had been. The more she thought about it, as she shuffled the tedious paperwork the hotel generated every day, the more convinced she became that he’d go without telling Amy the truth. Maintaining the status quo kept his options open.

  And then …? She definitely didn’t feel as if she could leave Amy on her o
wn if she didn’t want to be left. Amy had tied a little string around Sofia’s heart despite her best intentions to keep that heart pristine for her couple of years travelling or, at least, for this one summer in Italy. With sudden resolve, Sofia decided she really would suggest that they begin looking for somewhere else. Maybe Spain or maybe just elsewhere in Italy? She didn’t feel as if she’d finished with her father’s homeland yet, but Montelibertà, without Levi, didn’t attract her. Better to be somewhere fresh, without all those memories looping more and more strings around her heart.

  Then she forced herself back to thinking about check-in forms because everybody knew that string didn’t stretch. Certainly not right across Europe.

  Chapter Eighteen

  When Levi returned to the hotel three hours after he’d left, he pulled the bike back onto its stand. He couldn’t wait to drag off his helmet and Joe Rocket jacket. He wiped the sweat off his face and ran his fingers through his hair to lift it from his scalp. A ride usually helped him order his thoughts, leaning with the bike as it cornered, opening it up on the motorways – autostrade here – for the thrill of seeing the scenery flash by.

  But this ride hadn’t provided him with any such comfort.

  It had made him feel baked into his gear; it had made him angry at himself for not being able to make a decision; and it had made him sad he was leaving this beautiful place behind him. Leaving his daughter. His daughter. He’d almost got used to the idea that he had a daughter … but not to the fact that she didn’t know that he was her father. And he was leaving bright, breezy, smiling, caring, practical, incredibly hot Sofia, a woman to whom he’d formed a connection on all kinds of levels.

  Carrying his jacket and sweaty crash helmet, he was glad to gain the cool interior of the hotel reception area. As if magnetised, his eyes swivelled towards the front desk to see if Sofia was there. She was, smiling professionally, dealing with some hipster with a man-bun and a beard. When she turned to search for something in a set of drawers Levi saw the hipster altering position so he could check out Sofia’s rear view.

  Levi whipped his gaze away as if he’d been caught in a lecherous moment himself. In fact it was an unwelcome flash of jealousy that made him look away. He didn’t want to watch another bloke eyeing Sofia up. He frowned despondently as he trudged up the stairs. Not only did he not have exclusivity with Sofia, on Thursday he’d be leaving Casa Felice and Montelibertà and might never see her again. Bedford was only an hour from his home in Bettsbrough but, from what she said, whether she returned to the UK at all was up in the air. She was travelling. Physically and emotionally exploring, learning, stretching. Being free.

  Later, up in his room, when he’d showered and pulled on clean shorts, he sent Sofia a text for her to pick up on her break.

  Levi: Can we talk? Maybe you could ring me from your room when you get off tonight if you don’t have other plans.

  Before he could put the phone down and decide what to do with himself for the evening the phone rang, but it was Wes’s name that flashed onto the screen. Automatically, Levi opened his laptop as he answered so he could get online to work with Wes if he needed to. ‘Hey.’

  ‘Are you still coming back at the weekend?’ Wes was obviously not in the mood for greetings.

  ‘Yes, it’s all booked.’ And then, when Wes didn’t immediately reply, ‘How’s everything your end?’

  A hesitation. Then, ‘OK. Just thought I ought to report in that Octavia’s gone and I’ve revoked her access privileges because there’s something off about her.’

  Levi’s heart turned over with a heavy thud. ‘What happened?’ With swift movements he switched his phone to speaker and set his fingers to racing over the keyboard of his laptop to access the server. ‘Wes?’ he prompted, when the silence had gone on for a few seconds. He glanced at his phone.

  The call had ended.

  Swearing at the instability of the local mobile signal he gave Wes a few minutes to call back while he accessed the server log, able to see where only an hour ago Wes had revoked all user privileges for Octavia Hawthorn, deleting her username and password, the usual practice when anyone left. Relieved and anxious in equal measures he snatched up his phone and tried to ring Wes back.

  The call went directly to voicemail. He cursed at technology that was only any good when it worked and tried to get Wes via the office landline. Then Facetime, Skype and Facebook calling and WhatsApp’s call facility, all without success.

  Wes had gone offline, if not off the grid – at least so far as Levi was concerned.

  He snatched up his phone again and rang his brother, Tyrone, who answered immediately. ‘Hello, stranger! You’ve been a bit quiet. Mum’s been worrying about you taking off on some painting odyssey at no notice then staying so long.’

  ‘I’m fine, and I called her last weekend and told her I was fine,’ Levi answered impatiently.

  ‘Must be her mum-radar working overtime. She thinks you’re behaving oddly. I said, “What’s new?”’

  Levi broke into his smartarsery. ‘Ty, are you still at the garage? Can you do me a favour and whiz upstairs to see if Wes’s there? I need to talk to him.’

  Tyrone sounded unperturbed. ‘Don’t think there’s much point. He left a while ago. I watched him drive away. He said he was working from home for the next few days.’

  ‘Did he say why?’ Levi’s heart began a slow descent to his boots. There was no reason for Wes not to work at home. The advantage of working solely in virtual products was that a laptop and internet access to the server and the networked Mac Pros were all you needed. Wes didn’t bother with a landline at home and his mobile could easily be switched off, which was great when he wanted to concentrate but crap if you wanted to get hold of him. And Levi did.

  He snapped back to the present when Tyrone spoke again. ‘That girl he’s had working with him’s OK, isn’t she?’

  ‘Octavia?’ Levi said numbly. ‘I think she’s his girlfriend.’

  ‘Looked like it.’ Tyrone chuckled. ‘He looks as proud as a dog with two doodahs, walking around holding her hand and kissing her. Have you met her? Hot or what? Wes’s wearing the dazed look of a bloke in love.’

  ‘Yes. They met through me. She’s the girl who found my phone that time.’

  ‘Really?’ Tyrone gave an elaborate sigh. ‘Maybe you should have snaffled her for yourself. Even for a happily married man she’s a distraction, wafting around the place.’

  ‘Not my type.’ And perhaps about to get less so.

  He got off the phone with his brother as soon as he could, after enquiring as to the welfare of Tyrone’s wife Beth and toddler twins Grace and Serena. Then he settled on the bed to spend the evening combing through the server files – but without being able to find a thing wrong.

  He searched every page on the site and still couldn’t find anything. In fact, the site looked fantastic and the stats showed it was attracting more traffic than ever, including the Modern Woman page that Octavia had instigated. She’d been logged in as a moderator as recently as yesterday and appeared to have been fulfilling that role with humour, accuracy and diplomacy, exactly as the notes to moderators requested.

  WTF? Levi sat back.

  He’d expected to find something. His uneasiness at Octavia being involved in his business hadn’t gone away, even while he’d been absorbed in what might happen here in Italy. As if to remind him of unfinished business, his phone beeped and Sofia’s answer to his earlier text flashed onto the screen.

  Sofia: It’ll have to be from the garden because phones don’t work under the terrace, so no guarantee of privacy. Don’t get off till 11 though.

  Levi: That’s fine.

  He rolled off the bed and stretched, suddenly conscious of an uncomfortable emptiness in his stomach. It was after eight, when he checked the time, so it looked as if Sofia had taken her break a bit late. He’d walk into town for dinner. Maybe it would clear some of his bafflement over Wes and/or Octavia. He pulled on a clean T-shirt and
grabbed his wallet.

  As he mooched through reception he was able to catch a glimpse of Sofia’s head, phone clamped to her ear as she gazed at the computer screen, rubbing her temples as if to soothe an ache. He paused to try and catch a snatch of her speaking in Italian because she always sounded alluring. When they’d been in bed together he’d asked her to speak Italian to him and she’d laughed as she complied, later admitting she’d said he had a nice arse. He’d liked her speaking Italian to him even more after that.

  She was doing more listening than speaking now though, frowning in concentration, so Levi stepped out into the warm, soft evening air, catching the perfume of the oleander bushes as he skirted Il Giardino and set off down the hill to town where the lights were just beginning to show in the dusk.

  By the time he let himself back into his room just before eleven to catch Sofia’s call, his mood had been lifted by a couple of beers. He’d have infinitely preferred to be having the conversation in person but things had conspired against them.

  It was nearly eleven-thirty by the time his phone rang and Sofia appeared on the screen. ‘I’d begun to think you’d forgotten and fallen asleep,’ he joked as he answered.

  ‘Sorry. It’s been a long day.’ She sounded tired and flat. He could imagine her on the bench outside her room, dragging her arms from her jacket and kicking off her shoes. In the same colourless tone – and maybe because she didn’t want to talk about her day – she posed a string of questions. ‘Did you enjoy your bike ride? Did you fill up ready for your mammoth journey to the UK? Is everybody at home excited about seeing you again? How’s Wes coping?’

  He hadn’t intended to focus on his leaving but he related his concerns about Wes’s odd phone call and the unease that persisted even though The Moron Forum was running like a well-oiled machine.

  ‘It sounds as if it’s definitely time for you to return to real life,’ she responded. ‘We’ve got each other’s contact details so I can … keep you up to date. Unless you’ve made some decision that will affect things?’